Neighbours
by WhiteFangoftheLeaf
Summary: Bad-boy Sasuke has been forced to move into a pristine little town by his father, Kakashi. A big change from city life. Will his new neighbor Naruto drive him insane, or will his new surroundings help him change for the better?
1. Moving Out Before You're In: Sasuke

I stared up at the large, pristine, elegant house in front of, my supposed new home. Straight out of a 'Good Homes' magazine. What a fucking nightmare. The double-fronted building was painted white along with most of the other houses on the street, as if labelling the occupants as boring and disturbingly identical. A white picket fence surrounded the spacious front lawn, and a cobblestone path lead from the sky-blue door to the gate, currently being opened by my sorry excuse for an adoptive father, Kakashi.

Always one to multi-task, he was balancing about five large boxes in his arms, while simultaneously instructing the delivery men where to move things, and opening the gate with a nudge of his hip. I almost wished he'd trip and drop everything as he made his way over the cobblestones, but his ridiculous coordination I knew would deny me the satisfaction of seeing him fall.

As Kakashi climbed the steps swiftly and made his way through the open door, my glare turned instead back to the monstrosity of the house. If only my so-called 'Death glare' worked on buildings, perhaps I could incinerate it on the spot. I guess it was better put to use on people anyway, it's not like the thing would feel any pain. Deciding it was about time I reminded Kakashi of my protests, I called to him inside the house.

"I hope you still remember that I am _not_ living here!"

I received a chuckle from one of the delivery men at my statement, but a swift glare from my furious eyes silenced him easily, his attempt at masking his fear giving me some comic relief at least. No reply, however, was heard from Kakashi. Fuck him, I knew he could hear me, he just knew I hated being ignored when I spoke. I was usually a silent person, who preferred to communicate with minimal noise, so when I spoke I expected full attention. Shoving my hands into my pockets, I called again.

"Hey, are you listening? I am NOT living here."

This time, a silver-grey head emerged from the doorway, a smile discernable from underneath the dark mask he always wore.

"Now now Sasuke, why don't you stop being so childish and help these gentlemen with some of the furniture. The sooner we get things inside the house, the sooner we can start unpacking."

My fists clenched as I continued to glare at his stupid smile. How many times had I told him I would not move away from the city? Yet he still dragged me out here to this pathetic little town, with its perfect houses and annoying and nosy residents, who had seem to find no problem with peering out of their windows in order to get a peek at the newcomers, not _two_ minutes into our arrival. I already missed our penthouse apartment, with the huge windows and the skylights, looking right over the city centre. Nobody to stare at you but the birds. I was perfectly content living in the busy, fast-paced place, and could not comprehend why the _hell_ Kakashi had decided we had to leave.

Alright, so maybe I was spending more time outside than was advisable... and I guess the people I spent time with weren't the most desirable companions... but if he was so desperate for a solution it should NOT have been plucking me from where I was content and dropping me into the town from hell. I mean, aren't all horror movies set in a seemingly charming neighbourhood? And it's not like my grades suffered, I was always top of my class, any time at home was usually spent studying.

Seeing that I was not about to move, Kakashi's smile quickly disappeared, and he raised an eyebrow threateningly.

"Sasuke, I won't ask you again. Either grab some boxes, or get in here and start sorting."

With that he disappeared back inside.

Hn. Looking inside didn't mean I had to live there I guess. And I really didn't feel like arguing when I was so tired from the journey. With him being stressed and cranky, I'd probably only end up with a lecture and a smack. I turned around to find a box to carry, and found the removal guy I had glared at was 'helpfully' holding a large package out to me, a sneer plastered on his face. With a scowl, I swiped it from his arms, and tried not to show my shock at its weight. That bastard probably handed me the heaviest one on purpose. Turning on my heel, I slouched up the path and through the door, stopping in the hallway to observe my surroundings.

The roomy entrance was painted white like the outside of the house, with a high ceiling and delicate silver chandelier hanging from the centre. Through the double doors I could see a wide, carpeted staircase leading to the first floor, a gallery on either side. It appeared there were a large number of rooms upstairs, judging by the number of doors I could see surrounding the top of the stairs. Excellent, more places to hide from Kakashi when he's breathing down my neck.

Continuing my tour forwards, I made my way into the hall, footsteps echoing off the polished floorboards, the shouts and instructions of half a dozen removal guys making me scowl in annoyance again. Even though I would never consider _this_ place my home, I hated having all these idiots intruding with their irritating noise. This moving had better be done with quickly. But then, I guess I'd be 'living' here more quickly... It was a crappy situation for me either way, as usual.

"Ah, so I see you've decided to be a good boy and help out. Could you drop that box in the kitchen for me, Sasuke?"

My silver-haired guardian came out of a door to my right, giving me instructions without even turning towards me, hurrying across the length of the room instead, through another door.  
Bastard wouldn't even look at me. I started forwards, then realised I had no idea where to find the kitchen.

"Where the hell is it?"

I muttered under my breath, deciding I did not want to talk to Kakashi, and would instead navigate my own way around. However, realising his mistake just after me, he called backwards

"Second door on the left!"

Damn his telepathy.

Sighing, I followed his direction and came into a large kitchen diner, fitted with white cupboards and appliances, a bare oak table and chairs situated in front of French doors that opened onto a patio area. Was nothing at all interesting or out-of-the-ordinary in this damned house? Did it all have to be so white and pristine and perfect?  
I set the box down on the island in the centre, realising it must contain china or cutlery or something. Carrying a box, that should be classified as enough helping... I was done being compliant now.

I made my way back into the hall, almost getting crushed by some careless idiots attempting to manoeuvre a leather sofa through a doorway. Dodging _that_ potential catastrophe, I climbed the centre staircase, making sure to scuff my black Dr Martens into the pale carpet. Hn, now how fucking pristine is this perfect damn house?

Reaching the top of the stairs, I looked to my right and noticed a number of my boxes labelled 'Sasuke Uchiha's stuff' had been piled in an open door halfway down the gallery. Irritated by the apparent allocation of my room already without any of my consent, I stormed over to the room and stepped over the boxes.

I was forced to resist the urge to drop my jaw at what I saw. Instead of another boring and perfect square bedroom inside, I found a narrow wooden staircase, leading up into what must be an attic of some sort. This was my room? What the hell?

Climbing cautiously up the steps, my head came up into an airy, open space. I continued up until I was standing at the top of the staircase, and as much as I hated the house, even I could not fail to be impressed. My new 'room' covered half of the roof; with sloped ceilings on either side, and several pale wooden beams spanned the length of the space. A number of skylights allowed the morning sun to stream though, but I noticed many alcoves and corners remained in shadow, suggesting that the room was even bigger than it appeared.

However, what really impressed me was what lined the two triangular, vertical walls at the front and back. Floor to ceiling shelves of varying heights leapt across the space, their inviting nudity just begging me to give them my extensive collection of CDs to embrace. The other side I could already picture holding my enormous (For a teenager at least) library, the shelves spaced perfectly apart in order to hold anything from a short, thick paperback to a towering, leather bound classic. This whole room, it was...

"So you found it easily then? I thought you'd be impressed."

I was shocked out of my daydream by Kakashi approaching from behind on the stairs. I was in such a state of wonder I did not even hear the door opening. He placed a large hand on my shoulder, and sighed heavily. I glanced at it briefly before l looked up at his face in confusion.

"Sasuke, I know you didn't want to leave the city, but it really is for the best, and I just know you'll be happy here, in our new home. Look, you've already found the perfect bedroom; it'll hold all your collections!"

He squeezed my shoulder gently as he spoke, the ultimate gesture of affection between us. I was not the touchy-feely type for sure, and neither was he. Well, unless it was a certain type of touching with a certain male victim who he was trying to fuck. Anyway, I was surprised by the apparent emotion in his voice, and even more shocked at the trace in mine.

I dropped my head down as I replied, struggling to keep my voice steady, succeeding of course, being an Uchiha, the master of self-control.

"You don't understand. I _don't want to live here. _I can't, it's suffocating with all this... perfection. Just because you've found an 'ideal' place to live, with an 'ideal' bedroom, it doesn't make you or I perfect, it won't fix things magically. I'm not going to play pretend games with you."

I growled out the last sentence, shoving his hand angrily from my shoulder, and shoved past him down the stairs, ignoring him calling my name. I shouldn't have got distracted in that stupid damn attic, and I'd forgotten so quickly of my determination to move back to the city. Kakashi was deluded if he thought I was ever going to call this place home.

Storming down the second staircase, I near-sprinted to the front-door, avoiding boxes and bubble-wrapped furniture as I swung it open. As soon as the bright sunlight hit my eyes I growled under my breath, and hissed in anger when I realised that the removal men had gone, their van being my planned escape vehicle.

Keeping my eyes to the ground, I strode angrily down the path and through the gate, shutting it so hard behind me I was sure it must have come off its hinges, but I didn't dare look back. I powered forwards, not caring where I was going, where I was headed, just wanting to get away. As I walked, I noticed dark spots begin to appear on the pavement, and felt a cool drop land on the back of my neck. Great, fucking rain, could this day be worse? At least it proved that everything on this street wasn't totally controlled, it couldn't make nature perfect.

The sparse droplets slowly developed into a persistent battering of rain, and I had still not stopped walking, despite the fact I couldn't see three feet in front of me. Shaking my sodden dark hair from my face, I noticed a dark sheltered avenue to my right, and jogged towards it. Once under the corrugated tin roof, I realised how cold I was, wearing only a black tank top and black skinny jeans. Rubbing my hands over my cold, pale arms, to warm them up, I leant back against a dry brick wall, and slid down it until I was sitting with my knees drawn up to my chest. I knew I looked like a tramp but I didn't care.

Reaching into my back pocket, I drew out a crumpled packet of cigarettes and a lighter, that had thankfully remained mostly dry. With slightly trembling hands, I lit a cigarette and putting it to my lips, closed my eyes and let my head drop back against the wall, ignoring the sharp pain and inhaling the heavenly fumes. With each drag I felt the tension leave my body, and felt warmed up from the core.

Kakashi might have thought he'd found all of my cigarettes when he cleared out my old room, but I was one step ahead, already having a decent stock hidden where he would never think to look. He could lecture me about lung cancer and cut up as many packets as he liked, but if I was going to be living in a place like this, there was no way I was going without fags.

Damn it, there went again! Acting like I was going to stay here. Fuck, I'd even called it my 'old' room, when I had absolutely no intention of giving it up for this place. I slammed my clenched fist against the concrete ground in frustration, giving a rare display of emotion as I let a groan rip free of my throat.

Watching a few thin trickles of blood make their way between my knuckles, I took another deep breath from my cigarette. Even if I was going to consider staying here, what the hell kind of life would I lead? Starting at yet another new school, but this time with no Gaara and Neji to meet me afterwards. No busy streets pulsing with light and sound to lose yourself in. No skate parks and concrete palaces to hang out. Nowhere to escape to.

I'd been to six different schools since I had moved in with Kakashi when I was eight. Despite being fawned over by teachers and students alike, my despondence and disobedience at each one had resulted in Kakashi taking me out and throwing me into a new one. I worked hard despite my antisocial behaviour, and my grades always remained perfect, something that had been drilled into me practically from birth, but I obtained naturally, being an Uchiha of course.

But Kakashi was never content with just good grades. I seemed to me that he though a new school and a new change would somehow result in a miraculous change of attitude, and I would transform from a moody and scowling child into a bouncing smiling angel. It was not until I was fourteen, nearly two years ago, and moved to my last school that I finally changed, although I doubt Kakashi considered it for the better. I made my first friends, people I was willing to trust and was eager to see.

At first he was ecstatic, as he gradually saw me come out of the depths I had retreated into, and a confidence and excitement I had never before experienced filled me. I spent hours everyday with Gaara and Neji, doing anything from studying together, to skating, to traipsing round the city aimlessly until we grew hungry enough to buy food.

But over the past year, we were all dragged into an unfamiliar world. Old enough to be invited underground, I found myself returning from school on a Friday and squeezing my studying into two hours, before racing to the basements and skate-parks that had become the meeting places of our young adult society. I was not until the early hours of the morning on a Sunday that I would return home each night, reeking of cigarettes with heavy metal pounding through my skull. I would grab a few hours sleep, having been an insomniac from an early age, and the whole thing would start again the next weekend, and occasionally on weeknights.

Kakashi must have seen me slipping away from myself and him with this new change, because he took every opportunity to ground me or punish me for the little things, anything to keep me at home long enough to talk to him. He might be a strict bastard at times, but I appreciated him taking me in, so I too made attempts to maintain what had been a careful but strong relationship, by trying to please him by staying in some nights. However the Underground was too enticing and easy for me to lose myself in, and I always ended up there again.

Apparently Kakashi thought it had gone on too long, because he plucked me out of my familiar surroundings and only friends, and dropped me in a world I dreaded. If he thought I was finally going to turn into the perfect little robot everybody wanted me to be now that I was here, he was sorely mistaken. I'll be exactly who I want to be, and he can force me to partake in whatever he wants, but I will never change for the sake of it.


	2. On The Other Side Of Heaven: Naruto

"NARUTO, GET OUT HERE NOW!"

I winced as Iruka's impatient summon swooped in through the open door of my bedroom, nearly deafening me. I desperately struggled to pull an orange t-shirt over my head as I heard his angry footsteps begin to make their way towards my room. My adoptive father had told me to go and get ready half an hour ago, but I _might_ have accidentally got distracted by a certain, extremely awesome LEGO construction I was working on, that had been lying so temptingly on my floor. Now 25 minutes later, I was half dressed and panicking.

He wanted to take me to meet a new neighbour, one of the rich families that made up the rest of our road. I usually would have whined and complained desperately, as the kids of these families made no attempt to cover up their disdain and obvious dislike of me at these mandatory welcome parties and house visits.

He was the gardener for our street, tending to massive lawns and hedges all day long. It's really hard work, with crappy pay, which just makes it even more frustrating when people treat _him_ like crap. We were pretty happy in our little three-room house at the end of the road, but we were always short on money, so as soon as I was old enough I would help him out after school and on the weekends. It was this busy lifestyle that made it even _nicer_ that my father always took the time to welcome these strangers.

Iruka would spend a few hours baking goodies, and I'd help him; that is if 'helping' includes licking the spoon and dipping my fingers in the sugar until I got a whack with said spoon and was excluded from the kitchen. Once cookies were baked and muffins raised, I was forced to trail behind Iruka up the street, seemingly to a different universe, as the house swelled in size and the front lawns expanded and became greener. (Thanks to Iruka's endless care, and my many hours of mowing them.)

Once I'd smiled at the adults and acted like a perfect little boy, I was usually sent off to 'play' with the kids of the household, usually involving name-calling and exclusion for me, and a lot of laughs for the others. And that's why I _usually_ complained.

But this time was different. Iruka told me that our new neighbours were a single father, and a teenage son around my age. My excitement perked at this information, as he certainly sounded like a potential friend, and one kid was definitely easier to deal with if things didn't turn out great. Being so different from the rest of the kids on this street and this area, I didn't have any friends who lived nearby. In fact, I didn't really have any friends at all.

So it was with a hopeful outlook that I let Iruka pull me through the living room and out of the door, shoving a tray of cookies into my arms. I kept my head down slightly as we walked down the street. The sun had come out after a morning of heavy rain, so loads of people were sitting on their porches and enjoying the sun. Elegantly dressed adults gave thin-lipped smiles and nods to Iruka as we passed, and I was greeted with a few snorts and hushed comments from the teenagers that were lounging on a rug in front of one house.

When we finally reached the top of the street, where the largest houses were, Iruka stopped abruptly, and I received a glare when my almost-collision into his back nearly resulted in a squashed-cookie mess on the floor.

"Now remember Naruto, be as welcoming as you can, I'm sure the boy will be tired, and nervous about having to make new friends." Iruka reminded me with an encouraging smile.

I nodded enthusiastically, and gave him a smile to rival the sun's brightness.

"Don't worry; I'll be so nice they won't know what's hit 'em!"

Chuckling at my statement, he swung open the white painted gate, and I followed him up the cobblestone to sky-blue double doors, almost tripping _again _as I failed to notice the two steps leading up to them.

He knocked twice on the door, and it took two minutes or so for anybody to answer. We waited awkwardly, my arms beginning to ache, and wondering if there was any point in having turned up. When the door finally opened, I let out an inner sigh of relief, and Iruka appeared obviously overjoyed.

"Ah, Mr Umino, and this must be your son. Sorry it took so long to answer, I was at the top of the house and our staff haven't arrived yet."

Our saviour was a tall, lean man with scruffy grey hair atop his head, although he didn't look much older than thirty. He wore a black dress-shirt and black slacks, but his feet were bare, and my eyes were drawn instantly to the black mask he wore, covering the lower half of his face. A smile was discernible from beneath it however, and his dark grey eyes appeared to be analysing everything about me in a single glance.  
I gave him my best 'Uzumaki smile', and thrust out my hand towards him.

"My name's Naruto, pleased to meet you!"

He appeared somewhat surprised but shook my hand, chuckling.

"Hello Naruto, I'm Mr Hatake, but you can call me Kakashi. You seem like a friendly young man, why don't you two come in?"

He stepped aside, gesturing for the two of us to enter.

"Thank you, it's great to see you again, and please, call me Iruka"  
Iruka replied with a smile, also shaking the man's hand as we walked into the hall.  
"I wasn't sure if it was too soon. When I saw you yesterday afternoon outside, you still seemed a little stressed from the moving, so I thought some home baking might cheer you and your son up a bit."  
At this I thrust out my tray of cookies helpfully.

Kakashi chuckled again and took the tray from my hands. "Thank you Naruto, and speaking of my son, I shall go and get Sasuke in a moment."

Sasuke... An interesting sounding name, hopefully he'd be an interesting person! I grew eager to meet him all of a sudden, following Kakashi with a bounce in my step. If Sasuke was as nice as his Dad appeared, I just knew we were going to get along great!

As Kakashi lead the way through the house, chatting amiably to Iruka, I gazed around in awe of my surroundings. This place was gigantic! The hallway and corridor we walked through were painted white, and everywhere seemed to have high ceilings and loads of windows, filling the house with light. It was the biggest contrast ever to our tiny little lodge with the low beams and small windows. I bet these guys never hit their heads on doorframes.

When we reached the kitchen, Kakashi and Iruka placed their trays on the white marble island in the centre, and crossing over to the table on the other side of the huge room, the silver-haired man pulled out a chair and gestured again for Iruka to sit down.

"Please take a seat and make yourselves comfortable, I'll be as quick as I can fetching Sasuke to meet you both. Please excuse my rudeness." He explained with a slight bow.

Iruka appeared flustered by the man's attention, and shook his head quickly. "Oh it's really no problem, take your time. I wouldn't want him to feel forced to come down if he's busy, I know we've interrupted your day."

"Don't be silly, it's a delightful, welcome break from unpacking." Kakashi chuckled. "And I'm sure Sasuke will perfectly willing to come and meet you both." I thought his smile looked a little forced with the last assurance, and I wondered vaguely if Sasuke was really the sort to be 'perfectly willing'.

Nevertheless, he strode out of the kitchen gracefully, leaving Iruka and I a brief opportunity to comment on our host. Although the first thing I did was snatch a peppermint-chocolate-chip cookie off the tray in front of me, ignoring the frown I received in response. Iruka couldn't afford to bake treats like this very often, I could never resist peppermint chocolate, it's the best food in the world! Other than ramen of course... I wonder what peppermint ramen would taste like...

Shaking my head free of the tempting images, I turned to Iruka, who had returned to staring dreamily out of the kitchen door. Huh, I wonder what that was about; he's not one to usually drift off. Deciding to interrupt his mysterious daydream, I leaned over the table eagerly to 'whisper' in his ear. Yeah, my whisper-mode is more like shouting to most.

"Hey Dad, I got a really good feeling about these guys! Kakashi's nowhere near as much of a stuck-up jerk as most of the people on this street, and I bet Sasuke's the same!"

Jumping slightly as he was startled back into the present, Iruka was straight back into frowning at me disapprovingly.

"Naruto, don't be so rude! You don't insult our _neighbours,_ no matter what you might think of them, and you don't talk about people in their own kitchens!" He hissed in annoyance.

Leaning back in my seat with a huff, I crossed my arms over my chest and puffed out my cheeks.

"Always so grumpy when you're tense... Not like I was gonna say it to their face...mean old man..." I mumbled under my breath. I didn't even have time to react before his hand flew across the table and smacked me upside the head.

"OW." I exclaimed, frantically rubbing at the spot where he'd hit me. Obviously, my 'quiet' mode was yet to be discovered. Still, he didn't need to wallop me for it...

Luckily, I was saved from any more of Iruka's grumpiness when our heads both shot up, hearing muffled shouting and bangs coming from directly above us. Glancing at eachother in confusion, then looking back up, it seemed fairly obvious to the both of us that there was some sort of conflict upstairs. My guess was, as I predicted, Sasuke wasn't very enthusiastic about meeting us. I sighed. It wouldn't be the first time it had happened, nor the last.

The noise suddenly stopped, and for a few seconds there was silence. Then two sets of footsteps began to move from above our heads, to fade somewhere over the hallway. A minute later, Kakashi's silver spikes appeared round the kitchen doorframe, his eye crinkled in an apologetic smile.

"I'm terribly sorry about having to leave you like that. Sasuke and I were just having a little _discussion_..."

As he said the name of his son, he gave a harsh tug on something hidden behind the wall, and a lean, pale arm came into view, it's wrist adorned by a number of chunky black wrist bands. I wondered absently if the rest of his body was as pale and toned... Wait, what the hell?! I quickly shook my head, confused by my random thoughts.

The said arm appeared to be forcibly resisting Kakashi's encouraging pulls, and with a roll of his eyes the man had to step into the kitchen in order to haul the limb's owner into view.

My eyes were instantly drawn to the boy's face. True to Iruka's promise, he seemed to be about sixteen or seventeen, with a pale, pointy face and high cheekbones. Atop his head was a mass of black hair, with a hint of blue, styled seemingly effortlessly across his forehead, only to spike up at the back. But what grabbed me straight away were his eyes. The almost pure-black intensity of the orbs seemed to stare straight into my soul as he glared right at me.

Jeez, what did I do to this guy? He was staring at me like I was Satan himself! Eager to escape his penetrating gaze, my sight dropped to observe his clothing. He wore a loose-fitting black t-shirt with sleeved rolled right up to the shoulders, and black skinny jeans that were totally destroyed at the knees and above, exposing more of that strangely pale skin. I mean c'mon, most people at school are tanned, it's not like we live in the Arctic!

On his feet was a pair of scuffed black Dr Marten boots that ended just below his calves, the laces untied and trailing lazily behind him. He was about 5"11, a fair few inches taller than me, and he was pretty slim, although his arms were toned and muscled.  
To cut long story short, he contrasted in pretty much every single way to the kids I was usually forced to meet. But I was yet to determine whether that was a good thing or not, and by the look he's been pinning me with, I wasn't optimistic.

"Iruka, Naruto, meet Sasuke, my adopted son. Sasuke, these are some of our neighbours, Mr Umino and _his_ son, Naruto."

Kakashi's introduction startled me out of my observation. Although I'd guessed they probably weren't related through blood. From what I could see, other than the dark eyes, they were unalike. Except Kakashi's mask restricted my view quite a lot. Either way, I was right.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Sasuke." Iruka stood up and stepped forward, holding out his hand. "Don't mind the formalities, you can call me Iruka" He said, throwing a smile in Kakashi's direction.

There was a moment of silence as Sasuke observed the man's outreached palm before he shook it begrudgingly. Hmm, this guy sure was strange, one might even say bordering on arrogant.

"Hn. Pleasure." He replied with little conviction, his voice low and monotonous, before he quickly drew his hand back, crossing his arms across his chest.  
Deciding to stick to my promise that I would be super-nice, I too stuck out my hand with a blinding smile.

"Hey, I'm Naruto Uzumaki, great to meet ya!"

There was another silence as he glared at me, totally ignoring my hand, only this time it was about four times as long. I glanced back in question at Iruka, who appeared as bemused as I was, but nodded his head to signify I shouldn't give up.

With a deep sigh, Kakashi gave the raven-haired boy a not-so-subtle nudge with his elbow in the ribs. He glanced up at his guardian's face in annoyance, his expression the picture of martyrdom, before grasping my hand in a handshake, letting go as fast as he could.

I renewed my grin in triumph, stepping back to Iruka who patted my back gently in acknowledgement. It wasn't often I lasted this long without flipping out from the attitude I got from the other kids.

However, as soon as the gesture had been returned by Sasuke, he had rolled his eyes and turned to the door, already on his way outta there.

"Whoa there Sasuke, where do you think you're going?" Kakashi reached out and grabbed the back of his shirt, effectively stopping him in his tracks.

"I've said my fucking 'Hello's' to this guy and his retard of a kid, that's all I agreed to do. Now let. Me. Fucking. Go." He pulled the material out of the man's grasp and stalked out, shoving his hands in his pockets.

Iruka and I stayed where we were, somewhat shocked. Iruka, by Sasuke's pretty foul language, and me... Well I wouldn't even say I was shocked. In fact, being called a retard wasn't in any way unusual, it was just... in front of his dad? Geez, if I said that in front of Iruka, he'd be handing me my ass right about now. He's pretty strict on manners and stuff.

Meanwhile, Kakashi had moved over to the table and collapsed into the chair, placing two fingers on each of his temples.

"I am terribly sorry, both of you, it is absolutely despicable that he spoke to you like that. I assure you he won't get away with it." He apologised with a deep sigh.

Iruka's shocked expression instantly melted into one of pity at his exasperated host, and he rushed to his side, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Really Kakashi, it's no problem. I understand this move has been stressful for the two of you. Why don't you tell me all about it?" He pulled out a chair and sank into it; giving Kakashi's shoulder an encouraging pat.

The silver-haired man seemed a little reluctant, even embarrassed, but slowly began to explain how Sasuke had been getting in to trouble back in the city where they lived, and it finally got to a point where he though moving away was 'the only option left.'

Iruka listened carefully and made sympathetic noises, and I smiled to myself about how lucky I was to live with this guy. Iruka was like... A hot chocolate with marshmallows when you're sad, he has this awesome ability to just make all your worries go away, or be an ear to listen when you wanna talk. Although, I zoned out about half way through, choosing instead to explore the kitchen a little. My ears aren't the listening type.

I was just getting to know the front of the fridge, which had a few photos on it in an attempt to make it look homely, when Iruka called my name and I spun around.

"Naruto, were you listening at all?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.

I stared at the floor sheepishly, tracing the tiles with my sneakers.

"Um, no... Sorry Dad...What was it you wanted?"

He sighed, but continued on.

"We were just discussing how it may be beneficial if you and Sasuke got to know eachother a little better. He might have just felt intimidated just now, hence his reaction, but I'm sure talking to someone his own age will make him feel more comfortable."

Wait, I was supposed to go and talk to this guy?! After he called me a retard and totally ignored me? He looked pretty dangerous too, and I sure as hell didn't want to walk myself into an early death.

Kakashi butted in too, in support of the suggestion.

"I think that's a great idea too. Up the stairs, turn right at the gallery, and it's the fourth door down. Now off you go."

I opened my mouth to protest, but Iruka simply cut across me, a warning frown on his face.

"Ah ah ah, Naruto, you do as you're told. Now don't be silly, I'm sure you'll get along swimmingly."  
With that, he ushered me to the door of the kitchen and pushed me through, pointing with an expectant expression in the direction of the stairs.

I looked pleadingly at him for a moment, but his face remained unchanged, so with a sigh of resignation I slouched off towards the staircase.

I did make sure I took my time getting there though, eager to prolong my existence. I just knew I shouldn't have been so optimistic about this guy. What on earth made me believe that a privileged, cool, older guy like him would want to be friends with a scruffy, financially-challenged loser like me? Anyway, there was still hope that I could at least convince him not to hate me.

I reached the bottom of the massive staircase, and slowly began to make my way up, treading as lightly as I could on the thick, perfectly white carpet. I wondered whether it would have been smarter to take off my tattered old sneakers before walking all over it.

When I got to the top, I followed Kakashi's instructions and started down the corridor, admiring the endless rooms and doors. It wasn't often I got to see the inside of a house like this, despite the fact I was pretty well acquainted with their gardens.

Once in front of the instructed door, I took a deep breath, composing myself, before opening it expectantly. I was surprised to find myself faced with a narrow staircase, but made my way up it anyway, worrying if this was even the right door.

At the top I found myself in a huge loft-type space that had to cover _at least_ half the house. The staircase was in the centre, and turning to my right I saw a king-sized bed with black sheets. Lying across the bed was Sasuke, his eyes closed, and expensive-looking headphones placed over his ears, a walkman CD player on his lap.

I decided I would say his name a couple of times, and if he didn't respond, I was just going to leave and abandon my mission. I walked over to his bedside, and cautiously called "Uh... Sasuke?"

No response.

I tried again, this time waving my hand just in front of his face. "Hellooooo? Sasuke?"

Still no response.

In a last ditch attempt, I reached over with the aim of tapping him 'gently' on the shoulder, but my clumsiness had other ideas. I caught my foot on the corner of his bedside cabinet, and with flailing arms and a panicked expression, landed face first on the teenager in front of me.

I was instantly rewarded with a knee in the stomach, and a voice that growled "What the FUCK?" in my ear, before I was shoved forcefully off the bed, rolling head over heels before landing on the floor at the bottom.

"OUCH, Jeez I'm sorry dude!" I exclaimed as I landed painfully on my ass. I jumped up and held up my hands as a symbol of peace. "I really didn't mean to do that, I just wanted to wake you up!"

Meanwhile, Sasuke had sat up in bed, rubbing his forehead where our skulls had collided, a terrifying scowl adorning his face.

"And you thought that would be the best way? What kind of fucking idiot are you?" He snarled at me, the venom in his voice almost making me take a step back, but I held my ground.

"Now listen here, I apologised, it was an accident! Anybody could have made the same mistake." I replied with a matching frown, seriously annoyed at him calling me stupid again.

"Hn. Not likely." He scoffed in disdain. He was carefully placing his phones and walkman on the pillow beside him, having stopped the CD and removed the headgear.

"Now would you care to tell me what the fuck you are doing in my room?"

"I didn't _choose_ to come up here, I'll have you know. Our Dads sent me up to talk to you. Apparently you're having trouble adjusting."

I had now settled into a somewhat defensive stance, my hands braced on the end of his bed, just in case he tried to insult me again.

"Ha, as if." He snorted. I looked at him, confused. Rolling his eyes he spat "My pathetic excuse for a father only sent you up here so he could be alone with yours. It's just one step closer to being able to fuck him up the ass against the counter."

My eyes widened in shock, and took a slight step back from his tone and explicit choice of words. He'd said it as if it was an everyday occurrence, but Kakashi seemed so nice! And I did NOT want to imagine anyone doing anything of the sort to my Dad.

"H-hey, shut up! Don't talk about my Dad like that!" I spluttered, watching his smirk grow as he observed my reddening face.

"Stupid little kid, lived such a sheltered, perfect life?" He continued, a menacing glint in his eye. "Bet you though everyone was as damn lovely as they appear on the outside. You'll find out soon enough it's all a fucking lie. Nobody has good, selfless intentions in this fake world."

He was treating me like some little kid to patronise, and I was having none of it. I'd had high hopes of leaving this house with a new friend, and I wasn't about to let that hope go easily.

"Hey, look here, you can't talk to me like that! I came up here real nice, to talk to you, and you repay me by being a total jerk!" I yelled angrily.

Stomping forwards, I plonked myself down on the end of his bed and crossed my arms, pouting in annoyance.

"You'd better start talking to me right now, 'cause I'm not leaving until you start spurting your problems!"

He stared at me for several seconds with one eyebrow raised, obviously in disbelief, before replying slowly "What. The. Fuck. Makes you think you have any way of possibly helping any issues that I have?"

His expression shifted into one of cold fury, and I unconsciously gulped nervously.

"You are an idiotic, obnoxious little kid with no idea about the world, since you have lived in this fucking pristine, dreamy, high-class little land your entire life."

He rose menacingly from the bed and started towards me, but I forced myself to hold my ground.

"You may think it's a problem when you run out of credit, or you get a detention, but you have no idea how lucky you are that those are your only worries."

I was bemused by his words, it seemed like he thought I was one of the rich kids around here! I opened my mouth to contradict him, but he snarled across me "Shut the fuck up!"

Without warning, he grabbed me by the front of my shirt and wrenched me up from the bed, his height advantage forcing me to stand on my tippy toes to avoid having my shirt ripped off. His obsidian eyes bore into mine as he said his 'goodbye'.

"That being said, you can fuck off back to your Daddy now and tell him what a good job you've done."

Then he threw me down the stairs.

.

.

.

Well, sort of. He shoved me towards the staircase, and being my clumsy self, I tripped and slid down the top few on my butt, before rolling down painfully to the bottom and through the open door, crying out in pain every time one of my limbs collided with the walls or hardwood flooring.

I lay panting at the bottom, imagining the bruises blossoming across my skin. Ouch. I tried really hard to resist the tears I felt building, but my vision began to blur with the pain and frustration. Was I such a pathetic person, that literally NOBODY would even _attempt_ to befriend me? It was almost ridiculous how much hope I had piled on this meeting, and on finally being able to relate to another person in this town.  
But Sasuke had succeeded in finally crushing my last hope. Even worse, he'd treated me with the same disdain as the others did, _even_ when I showed him I was making an effort to be his friend. It wasn't often I got that chance.

Behind me I could hear Iruka and Kakashi running up the stairs, and Iruka's shocked gasp as he threw himself towards me.

"Naruto honey, what happened? Are you alright?" He worried over me, hands running over my limbs to check for injuries, although I knew there was nothing life-threatening already.

I pushed myself up into a sitting position, unable to stifle a groan as my abused muscles protested. Iruka appeared visibly relieved when he saw I was able to move, and slowly helped me to stand up, leaning heavily against him.

Kakashi too seemed to relax when he saw I was ok, and I nervously observed his dark eyes change from concerned to furious. I wouldn't want to be Sasuke right then. Although, I didn't really feel like being me, either.

Still supporting me with my arm slung around his shoulder, Iruka turned to the silver-haired man, an apologetic expression on his face.

"Thank you so much for your hospitality Kakashi, I really appreciate it. Hopefully we can meet up soon in more..." He glanced up the stairs, and a flash of annoyance crossed his face. "favourable circumstances."

Eyes refusing to leave their position of glaring up into Sasuke's room, Kakashi nodded briefly. "Yes, yes, we really must. Until then I believe I must attend to my son, and you need to tend to yours." He spared an apologetic glance in our direction. "I'll show you out beforehand, though."

He turned and led us back down the stairs and through the hall, waiting patiently by the door as Iruka and I made the slower journey, with me still limping at his side.

When we finally made it across the threshold, Kakashi and Iruka grasped hands briefly and smiled, before the masked man shut the door. Neither of us looked at eachother as we hobbled down the street, but when Iruka was eventually able to close the rattling door to the cottage, I glanced up at his face. With a wave of shame I saw that it was the picture of disappointment.

I sighed. Well done Naruto, a real successful day.


	3. UPDATE FROM AUTHOR: The Reassurance

Hello dearest readers, this is just a little message to those interested. My final exam of the school year is tomorrow afternoon, and then I shall finally be able to do some intense and guilt-free writing!

I'll be updating both of my ongoing stories very soon as I'll be writing in every spare minute I can get, and I might even add the first chapter of a new story I've been drafting, although that might be a bit unfair to my other stories considering how long they have been abandoned for.

Anyway, I apologise greatly for my absence but look at it this way, at least now you'll get some longer, quality chapters instead of rushed and aimless ones!

I am so so so grateful for all of your lovely reviews, they mean so much to me, and I ope I can really deliver what you want in the next few chapters. Feel free to leave in the reviews anything you'd like to see, characters, pairings, or plotlines! I love all Naruto characters so I'm no adverse to writing about ones you'd like to see.

Yours truly and ever faithful,

WhiteFang x


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